Chapter : 43
A few hours later, I arrived at Aolium, a place I had only known by name, and felt a sense of bewilderment.
Aolium was a quiet rural village, completely devoid of any sense of the war raging elsewhere.
Staring blankly at the unexpected view through the carriage window, the carriage finally came to a stop.
Outside the window, I saw a low building.
It was surrounded by log walls, so I couldn’t see much inside, but judging by the top of the building barely visible over the not-so-high fence, it seemed to be a single-story structure.
However, the wall stretched farther than I had expected, which suggested that the space inside must be quite large.
The carriage door opened, and Rajif spoke to me.
“We’ve arrived at the Aolium Fortress.”
“A fortress?”
The building behind the log wall must be the Aolium Fortress.
“Please, get down.”
“Um, Rajif… but where is the war happening? Is this really Aolium? It just looks like a quiet, peaceful village.”
“Please get down first and enter the fortress.”
Rajif’s voice carried a hint of irritation as he urged me.
Grunting with effort, I lifted my bag and stepped out of the carriage.
Rajif didn’t even seem willing to help carry my bag.
What a rude person.
“May I carry your bag for you?”
Rajif asked, as if slapping my inner complaint.
“Oh! Yes, thank you.”
I quickly handed him the bag.
He took it lightly, as if it were empty, and led me toward the fortress.
Inside, there was a very large training area, with hexagonal wooden houses lined up like containers.
Beyond them, a considerably large building stood.
The smaller wooden houses were apparently the knights’ quarters, and the larger building behind them seemed to be a common area.
There were almost no people in the fortress at first, but a few minutes after Rajif and I entered, people gradually began to appear.
“Rajif!”
They must have recognized him, because they hurried over.
Rajif left me alone and spoke briefly with the people welcoming him.
They looked at me with serious expressions.
Rajif… what is he saying to them right now?
I approached them.
“Rajif! Is this really the fortress? Where is the war happening? Where is Crown Prince Calix?”
I fired off questions.
But Rajif spoke about something entirely unrelated.
“Miss, you and I will stay in the fortress. I will show you to your room. Follow me. Don’t expect the room to be comfortable for a woman.”
What?
What are you talking about?!
Stay in the fortress?!
But Rajif said that and closed his mouth, refusing to speak further.
I was dumbfounded.
What exactly are you doing right now?!
“Rajif! I have no intention of staying here! I brought you to send to Lord Calix and then return to Everlen immediately. You need to go to the battlefield where Lord Calix is right now!”
“No. The war is currently happening at the Third Base, which is quite far from here. Fortunately, there is no danger to you. I will protect you here.”
It seemed that the two sides were confronting each other several kilometers away. In other words, this fortress was a headquarters for sending knights to the front lines.
Although Aolium was at the empire’s front, this fortress was clearly in a relatively safe rear position.
“What do you mean? I didn’t come here to stay safely in the fortress with you! I came to send you to Calix! Go to the battlefield immediately!”
But Rajif was immovable.
He clearly had no intention of leaving me alone to go to the battlefield.
This is ridiculous!
I came all the way to Aolium, only to be useless and wait for him to finish the war?
“Rajif!!!”
I screamed in frustration.
He ignored me, carrying my bag, and began walking somewhere.
It looked like he was heading toward my quarters.
Unbelievable.
But I had no choice but to follow him.
I couldn’t just stand in the fortress courtyard not knowing where to go.
I was furious to the point of madness.
It had already been three days.
Three days of boiling anger and frustration, doing nothing in this Aolium Fortress.
Rajif remained outside my quarters without moving, ignoring my insistence that he go to the battlefield.
By my calculations, the ambush would begin tomorrow or the day after.
The attack that could turn the tide of the war.
The attack where Rajif would be injured and Calix would launch a counterattack.
I had thought that since Rajif had brought me here urgently, even making me sleep in the carriage, there would be plenty of time.
But absurdly, we wasted three days doing nothing in Aolium.
I dreaded that we might not be able to send Rajif to Calix before the ambush, which could happen today or tomorrow.
Why did I even come here?
I came to help save Calix, to gain some advantage!
Because of that stubborn, inflexible Rajif, it had been all for nothing!
As the third day drew to a close and dusk began to fall, I reached the brink of an explosion.
I didn’t care!
I didn’t even know which direction the battlefield was, but I would go out no matter what.
Rajif couldn’t forcibly stop me.
If I went anywhere, he would inevitably follow.
No flexibility at all.
I put the red necklace from the table around my neck.
I was ready to hit him with it if he frustrated me.
As I left the room, Rajif approached.
“Miss, it’s getting dark. You should go back inside.”
“Rajif, I’m going to the Third Base battlefield now. I know Aolium isn’t a large village. As long as I go somewhere, I’ll meet someone.”
I started walking toward the fortress gate.
“Stop there! Miss Kaelin! Stop!”
Rajif seemed flustered, calling me by a shortened name he usually didn’t use.
“You won’t be able to stop me by force. If I’m unlucky, I might get captured by the Dacres Empire or walk straight into their camp. Don’t worry. You won’t be at fault, Rajif.”
“Miss!”
I ignored him and kept walking.
Outside the gate, a dark dirt road stretched through the countryside.
“Ah!”
For a brief moment, the red stone sparkled.
It must have reflected the moonlight.
A strange stone.
I tilted my head, examining it, then stepped forward.
“Ah!”
Suddenly, I felt a strong grip on my arm.
It was Rajif.
He had grabbed me.
I looked up at him, wide-eyed in shock.
“I’m sorry. You cannot go anywhere.”
Rajif said firmly, looking down at me.
“……”
I glared at him.
He was silent, but the grip on my arm didn’t weaken at all.
“Did Lord Calix order you to protect me using such force?”
“No. But when there’s no other choice, I must act according to my judgment.”
Really?
His judgment?
“Rajif! So it was your judgment that allowed you to act?”
“……”
Rajif didn’t respond.
“Then listen to me and judge now. I don’t know if Lord Calix has heard, but my father made a deal with Crown Prince Eden Dacres.”
“I am aware.”
“So I also know Eden Dacres’ plans. Soon—tomorrow or the day after, I don’t know exactly—the Dacres Empire will launch a surprise attack. An attack aimed at Calix’s life. Dacres’ troops will infiltrate the Everletian side. Eden Dacres will infiltrate personally! He will try to kill Calix.”
I spoke as if I had heard this directly from Eden, even though I knew it myself.
Rajif’s face did not change.
Even after saying all that, he wasn’t swayed!
I felt frustration rising.
At that moment, Rajif finally spoke.
“Princess Kaelin Brockburk!”
His tone was full of disbelief.
From just the way he addressed me, I realized how he had viewed me until now.
The daughter of the prime minister trying to kill his lord—nothing more, nothing less.
However, because his lord loved me, he restrained his desire to kill me to obey his orders.
Perhaps he even suspected that my insistence on coming to Aolium was intended to harm Calix.
A chill ran down my spine.
His eyes and tone revealed the hostility he had hidden toward me, but instead of discouraging me, it gave me energy.
Yes, Rajif is that loyal to Calix.
That meant my words could reach him.
Because I was warning him that his lord could die.
And his next words confirmed my intuition.
“If the ambush you speak of is true, why tell me now? You are, after all, the prime minister’s daughter. I cannot fully trust you.”
Right.
He would be suspicious.
Even I, desperately trying to send Rajif to Calix, found my own determination slightly doubtful.
But in the end, it was to save myself and my family.
That’s the reason.
I reminded myself of this justification as I answered Rajif’s question.
“If my father succeeds, I will naturally survive. But if he fails and Lord Calix becomes emperor, my father won’t kill me even if I betray him. Calix, on the other hand, might. Whether Calix wins or my father wins, I want to survive! Survival is the most important thing. That’s why I’m doing this.”
This was my true feeling!
Even if I knew my father might fail, my words were not a lie.
After all, I was doing this to survive.
I continued to look Rajif in the eye.
His expression remained unchanged.
Ah!!!!!!
But I realized that while his expression stayed the same, his mind had changed.
The strength in his hand holding my arm had eased.
